The L-rd spoke to Moses saying: “Send out for yourself men who will scout the Land of Canaan, which I am giving to the children of Israel. You shall send one man each for his father’s tribe; each one shall be a chieftain in their midst.” So Moses sent them from the desert of Paran by the word of the L-rd. All of them were men of distinction; they were the heads of the children of Israel. (Sefer Bamidbar 13:1-3, these and all Bible and Rashi translations, The Judaica Press Complete Tanach)

In some ways, these verses are rather mystifying, since we are at a loss as to why Hashem gave Moses this command. After all, the final verse of the previous parasha does not provide us with a context for our pasukim, except in regards to the physical location of the Jewish people at this moment in time: “Then the people departed from Hazeroth, and they camped in the desert of Paran.” (Sefer Bamidbar, 12:16) While we usually learn the “story behind the story” through various Midrashim, in this case, Sefer Devarim fills in the gap in our narrative:

And I [Moses] said to you, “You have come to the mountain of the Amorites, which the L-rd, our G-d, is giving us. Behold, the L-rd, your G-d, has set the land before you; go up and possess it, as the L-rd, G-d of your fathers has spoken to you; you shall neither fear nor be dismayed.” And all of you [i.e. the Jewish people] approached me and said, “Let us send men ahead of us so that they will search out the land for us and bring us back word by which route we shall go up, and to which cities we shall come.” And the matter pleased me; so I took twelve men from you, one man for each tribe. (1:20-23, brackets my own)

In order to more deeply understand how the passages from Sefer Bamidbar and Sefer Devarim dove-tail, we need to imagine how they could be combined: “And the matter pleased me; [and I – Moses - brought it before Hashem who acceded to my request and said to me,] ‘Send out for yourself men who will scout the Land of Canaan, which I am giving to the children of Israel. You shall send one man each for his father’s tribe; each one shall be a chieftain in their midst.’ So I took twelve men from you, one man for each tribe.” At this juncture, we have a much better idea as to what likely took place in the interchange between Hashem and Moses prior to the sending forth of the scouts.

There remains one crucial issue: Why did the people and Moses need a reconnaissance mission to search out the land? This question is particularly apropos, since, on numerous occasions, the Almighty had declared the Land of Israel to be “a land flowing with milk and honey” – i.e. perfect in every way. (Sefer Shemot 3:8, 17, 13: 5, 32:3, etc.) This notion lends strong support to Rashi’s (1040-1105) famous explanation of the first words in Sefer Bamidbar 13:2: Send for yourself: “According to your own understanding. I am not commanding you, but if you wish, you may send.” Rabbi Shmuel Halevi Eidels zatzal (1555-1631), known by his Hebrew acronym as the “Maharsha,” builds upon Rashi’s interpretation by noting that Moses’ desire to listen to the Jewish people and send out scouts was actually in opposition to Hashem’s position:

This was not the view of the Holy One who had already testified that the Land was good; therefore, the people should have believed Him in this matter. The following statement concerning a [discerning] person metaphorically represents this idea: “Would a person purposely choose a bad portion for himself? [Certainly not!] – All the more so did the Creator [refrain from choosing a poor piece of land] when He selected the Land of Israel [as His special dwelling place and as the land for His chosen people]! … (Chidushei Aggadot, Masechet Sotah 34b, this, and the following translations, brackets and bolding my own)

Next, the Maharsha notes an additional problem that had been previously addressed by the Ramban (Nachmanides, 1194-1270): “Since it was also Moses’ desire [and not just the request of the people] to send forth the scouts, in what way did the people sin more than he?” After all, Moses had said: “And the matter [to send forth scouts] pleased me.” (Sefer Bamidbar 1:23, brackets my own) The Maharsha summarizes the most salient points of the Ramban’s highly complex response to our question in the following fashion:

Even in the wars that were fought with the guarantee of Hashem’s salvation, the Jewish people relied upon normative strategies. As the text states, “A steed is prepared for a day of battle, but the victory is the L-rd’s.” (Sefer Mishle 21:31) The Holy One agreed to such actions as scouting out the terrain, even though He had assured the Jewish people of undeniable victory. This was the case, for example, when Joshua sent forth two tzadikim (righteous individuals) who would never malign the integrity of the Land, namely, Caleb and Phineas, prior to conquering Eretz Yisrael. Moreover, the only reason they were sent was to ascertain the most advantageous points of attack in their war of indisputable victory.

[At this juncture we encounter a vital difference between the actions of Joshua and Moses.] In our parasha, Hashem agreed to Moses’ request to send forth men to explore Eretz Yisrael. Moses, however, was unaware that the number and type of men should have been limited to two individuals on the level of righteousness of Caleb and Phineas. As the Torah states, the Holy One told Moses, “Send for yourself men...” – i.e. the smallest number of “men,” being no less two, whose task was not to determine whether or not victory was possible, but rather to find the easiest pathways to the promised triumph. Unfortunately, the Jewish people had a decidedly different intention than the Holy One and Moses. The people demonstrated a fundamental lack of faith in Hashem’s promises, since they demanded empirical proof as to whether the land was “good or bad.” Moses, however, was completely unaware of the true basis for the people’s request to send forth scouts, which is why the Torah states: “And the matter [to send forth scouts] pleased me.”

According to the Maharsha’s explanation of our verse, “Send out for yourself men who will scout the Land of Canaan, which I am giving to the children of Israel,” in conjunction with the commentaries of Rashi and the Ramban, we now have a more comprehensive picture of its context and meaning: “Send out for yourself, according to your own understanding, men who will scout the Land of Canaan, since you [Moshe] are unaware of the people’s evil intention and of My [true] understanding and knowledge in this matter…”

In sum, the people’s intention from the very beginning was to send out spies, since they questioned the veracity of Hashem’s promise that they would inherit Eretz Yisrael. This revealed a singular chisaron emunah (lack of faith), as it was Hashem, and no other, who had taken them out of Egypt, fed them manna in the wilderness, split the Sea of Reeds, given them the Torah and performed countless other wonders and miracles. In stark contrast, Hashem and Moses sought to send out scouts who would lead the way to certain victory in the Promised Land.

With Hashem’s help, may we grow in our emunah (faith) as we strive to emulate Caleb, Phineas, Joshua and Moses. Moreover, may we continue to merit Hashem’s guidance, and live to see the universal recognition of Zechariah’s famous phrase: “Not by military force and not by physical strength, but by My spirit, says the L-rd of Hosts.” (4:6) May this time come soon and in our days. V’chane yihi ratzon.

They may also be found on YUTorah.org using the search criteria of Etengoff and the parasha’s name.

The email list, b’chasdei Hashem, has expanded to hundreds of people. I am always happy to add more members to the list. If you have family or friends you would like to have added, please do not hesitate to contact me via email mailto:rdbe718@gmail.com.

The end of our parasha contains a very difficult narrative wherein Miriam and Aaron speak against their beloved brother, Moses:

Miriam and Aaron spoke against Moses regarding the Cushite woman he had married, for he had married a Cushite woman. They said, “Has the L-rd spoken only to Moses? Hasn't He spoken to us too?” And the L-rd heard… The L-rd suddenly said to Moses, Aaron and Miriam, “Go out, all three of you, to the Tent of Meeting!” And all three went out. The L-rd descended in a pillar of cloud and stood at the entrance of the Tent. He called to Aaron and Miriam, and they both went out… With him [Moses] I speak mouth to mouth; in a vision and not in riddles, and he beholds the image of the L-rd. So why were you not afraid to speak against My servant Moses? The wrath of the L-rd flared against them and He left. The cloud departed from above the Tent, and behold, Miriam was afflicted with tzara’ath, [a spiritual malady with physical manifestations] as [white as] snow. Then Aaron turned to Miriam and behold, she was afflicted with tzara’ath. (Sefer Bamidbar 12: 1-10, this and all Bible translations, The Judaica Press Complete Tanach, verse selections and brackets my own)

At this point in the story, Aaron turns to Moses and implores him to intercede with Hashem on behalf of their sister, Miriam. Moses immediately entreats the Almighty to heal Miriam in the following famous words: “I beseech you, G-d, please heal her.” (12:13) While the English translation is a mere seven word prayer, the original Hebrew is even shorter, “A-le nah refah nah lah.” Moses’ prayer is shockingly short and, seemingly, almost perfunctory in nature. Beyond a doubt, it is certainly not the kind of prayer we would have expected from the greatest prophet of all time when his sister’s life was hanging in the balance. How, then, are we to understand Moses’ mystifying response to Aaron’s desperate plea?

Rashi (1040-1105), basing himself upon two parallel Midrashic passages, suggested the following answer to our question: Please heal her: “Why did Moses not pray at length? So that the Israelites should not say, ‘His sister is in distress, yet he stands and prolongs his prayer.’” At first glance, it seems that this explanation is even more problematic than our original concern. After all, what would have been wrong with Moses extending his prayer – his sister was in dire straits! Moreover, how and when did the Jewish people become the arbiters of appropriate tefilah (prayer) behavior? Moses was the greatest prophet in history; as such, he surely would have known the proper response to Aaron’s request. Why, then, was the potential reaction of the Jewish people a factor in the type and manner of his supplication to the Almighty?

Rabbi Ya’akov ben Asher zatzal (1270-1340) is known by posterity as “the Tur” and as the “Ba’al HaTurim,” after the names of his works on Jewish law and Torah analysis. In the latter sefer, he noted that Moses prayed on behalf of others on at least two other occasions wherein those tefilot differed from our instance of “A-le nah refah nah lah”:

The L-rd said to Moses, “Why do you cry out to Me? Speak to the children of Israel and let them travel.” (Sefer Shemot 14:15) [If we look at the word “mah” (“why”) in our verse, we will immediately notice that it is comprised of the letters “mem” and “heh.”] Hashem, [thereby,] intimated to Moses that in the future he would, indeed, cry out to Him [in prayer with and through the letters] “mem” and “heh.” The “mem” signifies the 40 days [i.e. the numerical value of this letter] that he would pray on behalf of the Jewish people [to gain expiation for their grievous sin of the Golden Calf]. The “heh” refers to the five words [i.e. the numerical value of this letter] that he would one day utilize in prayer on behalf of his sister, Miriam: “I beseech you, G-d, please heal her.” (Sefer Bamidbar 12:13) [From here we can learn that] there is a time to shorten and a time to lengthen one’s tefilah. This time, [when the Jewish people were standing before the Sea of Reeds with the Egyptians drawing ever closer behind them,] was not a time for prayer at all! Rather, “Speak to the children of Israel and let them travel!” [This means that it was a time of action rather than petition.] (Commentary to Sefer Shemot 14:15, translation, brackets and parentheses my own)

The Ba’al HaTurim is teaching us a crucial lesson regarding when to pray, and the very nature of the prayer experience. Kriyat Yam Suf (the Splitting of the Sea of Reeds) was not a time for prayer; instead, it was a time for straightforward action. As Shlomo Hamelech (King Solomon) taught us so wisely, “[there is] a time to be silent and a time to speak.” (Sefer Kohelet 3:7) Thus, as Hashem taught Moses, Kriyat Yam Suf was the moment to move forward and to jump into the sea, rather than stand and pray on its shore.

In stark contrast, the 40 days following the events of the Golden Calf were preeminently days of prayer. Would the promises to the Avot and Emahot (Patriarchs and Matriarchs) be fulfilled, or would we be relegated to the dustbin of history? Would we continue to be Hashem’s truly chosen and unique nation or would we become just one more ancient anthropological footnote? Clearly, the existential future of the Jewish people hung in the balance. At this moment, perhaps more than any other, Moses’ intensives prayers and pleas were absolutely necessary to ensure the continuation of our nation. Therefore, this was the time for Moses “to lengthen his prayer.”

In some ways, Miriam’s spiritual-physical crisis emerges as a middle ground regarding the nature of the prayer gesture. It was certainly not a time to be silent; yet, it was equally not the time for effusive and extensive tefilot. On one side, the Jewish people saw this moment as a time for action, similar in kind to their collective Yam Suf experience. Therefore, in their view, Moses should not have prayed at all – instead, he should have actively worked to attenuate the effects of Miriam’s tzara’ath. Alternatively, both Aaron and Moses knew that this precisely the time for the correct form of tefilah. It appears, then, that “A-le nah refah nah lah” emerges as a conceptual compromise that enabled Moses to pray in a manner that was at once fitting and proper, though short in duration. As the Vilna Gaon (Rabbeinu Eliyahu ben Shlomo Zalman, “the Gra,” 1720-1797) noted in a statement attributed to him, the Holy Zohar maintained, “that Moses had a bona fide tradition regarding tefilah – namely, if one were to use the expression ‘nah’ twice in the same prayer it will surely be accepted.” Thus, Moses knew full well that he would be answered, even though his prayer was a mere five words.

Like Moses of old, may we, too, be zocheh (merit) to witness the fulfillment of the bracha (blessing) in the Shemoneh Esrai: “Hear our voice, Hashem our G-d, pity and be compassionate to us, and accept – with compassion and favor – our prayer, for You are G-d Who hears prayers and supplications …” (Translation, The Artscroll Siddur) V’chane yihi ratzon.

The email list, b’chasdei Hashem, has expanded to hundreds of people. I am always happy to add more members to the list. If you have family or friends you would like to have added, please do not hesitate to contact me via email mailto:rdbe718@gmail.com.

One of the best-known passages in our parasha, and the entire Torah, is that of Birkat Kohanim (the Blessing of the Kohanim):

The L-rd spoke to Moses saying: Speak to Aaron and his sons, saying: This is how you shall bless the children of Israel, saying to them: “May the L-rd bless you and watch over you. May the L-rd cause His countenance to shine to you and favor you. May the L-rd raise His countenance toward you and grant you peace.” They shall bestow My Name upon the children of Israel, so that I will bless them. (Sefer Bamidbar 6:22-27, this and all Torah translations, The Judaica Press Complete Tanach)

The kohanim’s recitation of this three-fold bracha is simultaneously a holy, dramatic and auspicious moment within the cycle of the tefilot hayom (prayers of the day). In nearly all cases, adults suddenly become quiet and intensely focused upon what is to transpire, while young children run to their fathers to find temporary shelter under their prayer shawls - for even they sense that something quite special is about to take place. These behaviors naturally lead us to ask, “What is the true nature of Birkat Kohanim?”

My rebbe and mentor, Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik zatzal (1903-1993), known as the “Rav” by his followers and disciples, discussed our question in one of his weekly drashot. He noted that the commandment of Birkat Kohanim entails two separate aspects: “the transmission of a direct blessing from G-d and hashra’at ha-Shechinah (the manifestation of Hashem’s presence).” Moreover, the Rav stated that Birkat Kohanim “is a direct meeting with the Shechinah that presents us with an intimate encounter in which we come [so to speak] face to face with G-d.” (These, and all following quotations of the Rav, are from Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik, Darosh Darash Yosef: Discourses of Rav Yosef Dov Halevi Soloveitchik on the Weekly Parashah, Rabbi Avishai C. David, editor, pages 290-296, brackets my own.)

If, as the Rav maintains, Birkat Kohanim is preeminently a time wherein we experience hashra’at ha-Shechinah, how is it possible that nearly any kohen may participate in this mitzvah? After all, it seems logic would dictate that only very holy and righteous kohanim should give this bracha. Fortunately, the Rambam (Maimonides, 1135-1204) directly addressed this issue in the Mishneh Torah:

Do not wonder: “What good will come from the blessing of this simple person?” for the reception of the blessings is not dependent on the priests, but on the Holy One, blessed be He, as the Torah states: “They shall bestow My Name upon the children of Israel, so that I will bless them.” The priests perform the mitzvah with which they were commanded, and G-d, in His mercies, will bless Israel, as He desires. (Hilchot Tefilah 15:7, translation, Rabbi Eliyahu Touger with my underlining and emendations.)

Let us briefly review the salient points that are found in this passage: Almost any kohen is fitting to fulfill the mitzvah of Birkat Kohanim, since “the reception of the blessings is not dependent on the priests, but on the Holy One, blessed be He.” Moreover, and of singular import, the Rambam stresses that the kohanim bestow Hashem’s name upon the Jewish people, i.e. they serve as the viaduct through which the Almighty’s blessing flows, but it is “G-d, in His mercies, [who] will bless Israel, as He desires.” Based upon a careful reading of our passage, we find that this concept is clearly found in the verse wherein it states: “I [G-d] will bless them.”

While the Rambam specifically addressed the question of “What good will come from the blessing of this simple person?” his response strongly buttresses the Rav’s assertion that Birkat Kohanim is the time of hashra’at ha-Shechinah – for it is G-d, not man, who actually gives the blessing. Therefore, Rav Soloveitchik maintained:

Here the Rambam states clearly that the blessing in Birkat Kohanim comes not from the kohen but directly from G-d. This is why the kohen who recites the blessing does not require any special level of sanctity… Contrary to appearances, Birkat Kohanim is not only a relaying of the heavenly blessing, but also a direct enactment of hashra’at ha-Shechinah. Nesiat kapayim (the “raising of the hands,” as in the priestly blessing) – a face-to-face encounter between G-d and the Jewish people – leads to hashra’at ha-Shechinah. It reflects G-d’s act of extending kindness. (Underlining my own)

May it be Hashem’s desire that He will ever extend kindness and mercy to the entire Jewish people, and bless and watch over us. May He cause His countenance to shine upon us and favor us. May the L-rd raise His countenance toward us and grant peace to all of His people. V’chane yihi ratzon.

They may also be found on YUTorah.org using the search criteria of Etengoff and the parasha’s name.

The email list, b’chasdei Hashem, has expanded to hundreds of people. I am always happy to add more members to the list. If you have family or friends you would like to have added, please do not hesitate to contact me via email mailto:rdbe718@gmail.com.

Chazal (our Sages of blessed memory) established the yearly calendar in such a manner as to ensure that the public reading of our parasha almost always precedes the Festival of Shavuot. In their divinely inspired wisdom, they perceived an indissoluble conceptual link between Parashat Bamidbar and the giving of the Torah on Shavuot. Midrash Bamidbar Rabbah (1:7) represents one of the best examples of this manner of thought:

And Hashem spoke to Moshe in the Sinai Desert: Why [did Hashem speak to Moshe] in the Sinai Desert? [Based upon the inclusion of the phrase, “the Sinai Desert,”] our Sages taught that the Torah was given through three different modalities (literally, “three things”]: fire, water and [the medium of] the desert.

How do you know that the Torah was given through fire? [The text states,] “And the entire Mount Sinai smoked because the L-rd had descended upon it in fire, and its smoke ascended like the smoke of the kiln, and the entire mountain quaked violently.” (Sefer Shemot 19:18)

How do you know that the Torah was given through water? [The text states,] “L-rd, when You went forth out of Seir, when You marched out of the field of Edom, the earth trembled, the heavens also dripped; also the clouds dripped water.” (Sefer Shoftim 5:4)

And how do you know that the Torah was given through [the medium of] the desert? [The text states,] “The L-rd spoke to Moses in the Sinai Desert, in the Tent of Meeting on the first day of the second month, in the second year after the exodus from the land of Egypt, saying.” (Sefer Bamidbar 1:1)

And why was the Torah given through these three things? [This comes to teach us] that just like these [three things, i.e. fire, water and desert] are free to all the people of the world, so, too, are the words of the Torah [free to one and all]. As the text states, “Ho! All who thirst, go to water, and whoever has no money, go, buy and eat, and go, buy without money and without a price, wine and milk.” (Sefer Yeshayahu 55:4, these and all Bible translations, The Judaica Press complete Tanach, Midrash translation and brackets my own)

After substantiating its assertion that the Torah was given through fire, water and the desert, the Midrash suggests an alternative explanation of the phrase, “And Hashem spoke to Moshe in the Sinai Desert.” In doing so, it imparts the lesson that a person must make himself/herself “like a desert” if he/she wishes to secure Torah knowledge: “Anyone who does not make oneself like an ownerless desert will be unable to acquire wisdom and Torah. Therefore, the Torah states, ‘in the Sinai Desert.’”

The value of Torah is inestimable. One of the many sources wherein Chazal gave voice to this idea is the Ahavat Olam blessing of the Evening prayer service: “For they [the words of the Torah] are our life and the length of our days, and about them we will meditate day and night…” (Translation, The Artscroll Siddur with my brackets and emendations) As such, we certainly must do everything in our power to acquire Torah knowledge on the highest possible level. Yet, what does the Midrash mean when it states that in order to gain wisdom and Torah it is necessary to “make oneself like an ownerless desert?” Let us explore the responses to our question given by one of the greatest Chasidic Masters, Rabbi Menachem Mendel of Kotzk zatzal (known as “The Kotzker Rebbe,” 1787-1859).

When the Holy One blessed be He came to the sea [to give the Torah,] it ran away. As the verse states: “The sea saw and fled…” (Sefer Tehillim 114:3) When He [initially] revealed Himself on Mount Sinai, it, too, fled before Him. As the text says: “The mountains danced like rams [away from Him]...” (Sefer Tehillim 114:4) When He came to the desolate desert, [however,] it received Him and praised Him. As the text states: “The desert and its cities shall raise [their voice]; Kedar shall be inhabited with villages; the rock dwellers shall exult, from the mountain peaks they shall shout.” (Sefer Yeshayahu (42:11) Then the Holy One blessed be He said: “This desert is better than all the other lands, and it is here that I shall build my lodging place for Myself.” He descended therein and everyone and everything became joyous – that the Holy One blessed be He went down thereto. As the verse says: “Desert and wasteland shall rejoice over them, and the plain shall rejoice and shall blossom like a rose.” (Sefer Yeshayahu 35:1, Midrash translation and brackets my own)

At this juncture, the Kotzker Rebbe suggests that only a person who rejoices in Hashem like the desert is fitting for the Schechinah (the Divine Presence) to dwell upon him and thereby merit the light of the Torah.

Following this initial analysis, the Kotzker Rebbe offers two additional interpretations of the expression, “make oneself like an ownerless desert.” The first focuses upon the manner in which a person should view his or her Torah accomplishments, and the second centers upon the middah (characteristic) of self-reliance and its application to Torah study:

Like a desert: Even if one has learned a great deal, and has achieved much in their Torah studies, he must know in his soul that he has not yet attained that of which he is capable. This is just like the desert that has never encountered the hand of man. As such, it remains unworked and unplanted. Like a desert: For it is the case that a person who dwells in the desert is forced to rely upon his own strengths and abilities [in order to survive], since there is no one else to help to help him. [This is equally true for the Torah scholar, i.e., he must expend all of his efforts and exercise all of his abilities if he is to achieve true greatness in his studies. As we learn in Pirkei Avot,] “If I am not for myself, who is for me?” (Source: Itturei Torah, translation and brackets my own)

In sum, the Kotzker Rebbe offers three expositions of the phrase, “like an ownerless desert,” that link our parasha to Shavuot and our acceptance of the Torah:

We must be perpetually prepared to encounter and praise the Almighty in unmitigated exaltation – so that we may acquire His holy Torah.

The attainment of Torah is definitionally a work in progress. Whatever level we have reached in our intellectual and spiritual quest, it is merely the beginning of a life-long journey to know the Almighty.

Self-reliance and prodigious effort are two absolute requirements in our desire to master the Torah’s wisdom.

This Shabbat’s Torah reading and the festival of Shavuot offer us opportunities to symbolically re-enter the midbar (desert) so that we may re-experience the majesty of Kabbalat HaTorah (Receiving the Torah). As the Kotzker Rebbe so beautifully taught us, may we make ourselves “like an ownerless desert,” so that these days will be ones wherein we joyously meet and praise Hashem and redouble our efforts to learn and master His holy Torah. V’chane yihi ratzon.

Shabbat Shalom and Chag Sameach

Past drashot may be found at my blog-website: http://reparashathashavuah.orgThey may also be found on YUTorah.org using the search criteria of Etengoff and the parasha’s name.

The email list, b’chasdei Hashem, has expanded to hundreds of people. I am always happy to add more members to the list. If you have family or friends you would like to have added, please do not hesitate to contact me via email mailto:rdbe718@gmail.com.